Chapter 2

I, on the other hand, was severely malnourished.

I hesitated for a long time before asking.

“How much would an abortion cost?”

The doctor looked up, surprised. “An abortion? Have you considered your age? Have you talked to your husband?”

I lowered my head. I didn't know what to say.

He sighed, sounding regretful. “You'd need to budget around twelve hundred dollars for a procedure.”

I checked my phone. I'd just put the appointment on my credit card. I had forty-five dollars of available credit left.

Leaving the hospital, I took the ultrasound report straight to Grant Group's offices.

I still wanted to talk to Ethan in person. If I kept the baby, there would be more appointments and prenatal care to pay for.

Claire stopped me outside his office.

“Ethan's in a meeting. What do you need, Ms. Parker?”

I gripped the report. I hated how pleading I sounded.

“I really am pregnant. If I'm going to keep the baby, I need money.”

She glanced at the paper and tossed it back.

“You just won't give up, will you? You even brought a fake ultrasound report.”

“What happens next month? A fake miscarriage, so you can ask for another round of medical bills?”

Several employees nearby turned to watch.

“Doesn't he give her a fortune every month? Now she's pretending to be pregnant for more?”

“She thinks he's an ATM.”

With every remark, I lowered my head a little further.

Claire stepped around me and pressed the elevator's down button.

“Some of us have work to do, Ms. Parker. This way, please.”

I put the report in my bag and rode down, leaving their murmurs behind me.

In the lobby, I heard Claire's voice coming from the receptionist's phone as she scolded her.

“Don't let her in again. All she ever does is come begging for money.”

I quickened my pace and left the building.

Resting a hand on my stomach, I whispered, “What am I supposed to do, baby?”

Then I caught sight of the Hermès bag hanging at my hip.

I had an idea.

I hurried to the nearest luxury resale shop. The owner took one look at how rushed I was and decided I must need cash badly. He offered only twelve thousand dollars.

Ethan had given me the bag for my birthday that year. It was a limited edition, the kind you couldn't buy just by having enough money.

But I didn't have a choice. I sold it.

After spending so long wondering how I would get by, seeing that money in my account finally let me breathe.

By that evening, photos of the Grant Group CEO's wife selling a used handbag were all over social media.

In one, I was handing the bag to the shop owner.

Some people said I'd spent myself into debt. Others claimed our marriage was falling apart and I was getting together enough cash to leave.

Ethan called soon after.

His voice was low and tight. “Are you that desperate for money? You sold your birthday present?”

“No wonder Claire said you showed up this afternoon with a fake pregnancy report.”

I tried to explain, but he didn't give me a chance.

“If you need money, ask Claire. Why would you lie about something like that?”

He sounded exhausted. Disappointed in me.

Everything I'd been about to say stayed in my throat.

“Okay,” I said.

After we hung up, I still hadn't decided what to do about the baby.

Then the twelve thousand dollars disappeared from my account. So did what was left of the money Megan had lent me.

A message arrived from Claire.

“Ethan says you can't control your spending. I've transferred the money out for safekeeping. I'll manage it for you.”

The next day, movers took every valuable thing out of the house.

The leather couch. The smart appliances. Even the potted plants on the balcony.